


Give Me Your Paw...

by Hellyjellybean



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ben owns a dalmatian, Cute, Dalmatian Jyn - Freeform, Dogs, F/M, Fluffy, Furry, No Angst, Rey own a dalmatian, Reylo - Freeform, Romantic Comedy, Short Story, Sweet, They both visit the library daily, This is a dog love story first, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Will have a happy ending of course, and a reylo love story second, dalmatian Cass - Freeform, doggies, light and fluffy, meet cute, probably only kissing, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:15:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25667290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hellyjellybean/pseuds/Hellyjellybean
Summary: This is based on a prompt from my queen @galacticidiots:Grad students Ben and Rey, always leave their doggos patiently waiting outside while they quickly check out books from the library. The puppies bond.(Eventually, so do the owners.)
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 88
Kudos: 247
Collections: Galactic Idiots Collection, Ijustfellintothissendhelp





	1. Chapter 1

Rey hummed and danced around her tiny flat as she got ready to leave for the day. Her baby boy, a brown spotted Dalmatian called Cassian, jumped from paw to paw excitedly with his tongue hanging out, watching her. Rey came towards him and scratched his chin. 

“We’re going to the library today aren’t we, Cass?” 

Cassian barked in response as Rey hooked his lead onto his collar. 

“And you are going to be very good aren’t you?” 

Another bark. 

“You know a bark is a binding contract,” Rey said firmly. Cassian rolled over and Rey laughed and bent down to scratch his tummy. 

“You gotta at least try to play hard to get sometimes, Cass,” she said lovingly as his tongue hung loosely out of his teeth filled mouth. 

**********

  
Ben fixed his glasses and pushed his black hair behind his ears. His black spot Dalmatian Jyn barked at him. 

“You’re right, Jyn. I should change my tie. The yellow is too jarring.” Ben loosened the tie and replaced it with a blue one. 

Jyn barked again. 

“I know, I know. I’ll take you for a very long walk right after we visit the library. I know you feel neglected, my studies are just so important right now. I’ll make more time for you, I promise.” 

Ben stroked Jyn’s head lovingly. Ben had found Jyn abandoned in an alleyway when she was just a tiny pup. He hand raised her and tried to teach her right from wrong but the spirited animal was still rather talented at swiping treats from children. 

“Okay, sweetie. Let’s go,” Ben said, grabbing her lead. Jyn’s eyes widened and she ran to the door. Ben clicked her lead into place and they were off. 

**********

  
As it was such a beautiful day, Rey decided to walk through the park to get to the library but she quickly remembered why she didn’t usually walk through the park. Because of the fountain. The fountain that Cass loved more than anything in the world. The minute his eyes focused on the cool running water, Rey felt his body tense on the other end of the lead. 

“Cass,” she said warningly. 

Her dog turned to look at her with large, sad eyes.

“Cass, I don’t have time right now! Maybe on the way back...mmm?” 

Cass seemed satisfied with her answer and barked in agreement and after one last longing look at the fountain he trotted past to the library. Rey tied Cass up outside and kissed his head.

“Two minutes,” she promised as she headed inside. 

But Cass wasn’t listening. He was looking down the street intently. Looking for something he loved even more than the big stone water bowl Rey sometimes let him splash in. Rey frowned but assumed there was a cat in the distance. She jogged up the library stairs and into the building. 

Two minutes later, Cass was wagging his tail so fast he was in danger of taking off. She was coming. The dog that smelt better than any other dog he had ever scented. He could see her tip tapping along the pavement alongside the tall man. The tall man that always gave him a chicken treat. He liked the tall man but he liked the tall man’s companion even more. 

Usually, the tall man tied his dog up on the other side of the railings so Cassian had to bark to get her attention, but today there was a thing with wheels over there. That meant he would have to tie her up right next to Cassian! He panted with excitement. 

“Hello,” said the tall man when he reached Cass. Cassian barked and nudged his hand with his head. The tall man had large hands. Good for pats. The man laughed and patted him then reached into his pocket. Yes! Chicken treat! The man threw it and Cass caught it in his mouth. 

“Good boy!” the man praised. Cass glowed. 

He tied his dog up next to Cass and told them both to be good. Then he disappeared into the library. 

The man’s dog didn’t look at Cass. Cass nudged her side. She ignored him. Cass barked. She still ignored him. Cass whined and she snapped her jaw at him. Cass lay down and put his head on his paws. Why didn’t she like him? Rey said he was a very good boy. He sulked and whined until something yellow caught his eye. It smelt sweet. Flower thing. Cass leaned towards the flower thing with his mouth open. He gently positioned his jaw around the stalk and closed his mouth. He pulled and heard a snapping sound. The flower thing was now securely located between his teeth. He turned back to the sweet smelling dog who was now watching him with interest and dropped the flower thing at her feet. She looked down, then leaned towards it and sniffed. Cass froze in place while he waited to see what her reaction would be. She turned to him and cocked her head to the side then leaned forward and licked his nose. Cass barked happily and wagged his tail harder. The other dog barked back at him and wagged her tail gently. 

Then Rey arrived with an arm full of books and patted both of their heads. She picked up the flower and slotted it into the pretty dog’s collar. Cass barked his approval. Then Rey untied him and they left but he kept looking over his shoulder at the pretty dog left behind and she in turn kept her eyes on him until they disappeared into the park. 

When Ben collected Jyn, he was amused to see a buttercup in her collar. He left it there as they started their walk. Ben talked to Jyn about the city as they strolled. Jyn loved Ben’s deep voice. She had no idea what he was saying but it sounded nice. Something about buildings and the things they were made of. Ben seemed to like buildings a lot. He drew lots of pictures of them. Jyn used to enjoy ripping some of them up until Ben got cross with her. Now she always tried to be a good dog and do what Ben asked. If she was good she got chicken treats and if she was bad…she got slightly less chicken treats because Ben was a sucker for her big sad eyed look. Jyn thought about the other spotty dog. The one who had given her the nice flower thing. Jyn had never had a dog friend before. She thought perhaps it might be nice. Then Ben threw her a chicken treat and she chewed it up and happily barked a thank you at him. 

***********

  
The next day, Jyn was the first to arrive at the library. Ben tied her up outside and kissed her nose before heading indoors. A few women passed by and cooed over the handsome man lavishing affection on his dog. Jyn nervously waited for the other dog to arrive. A few moments later, the female with the lovely smile turned up and tied her dog up next to Jyn. Then she patted them both and disappeared into the library. Jyn turned her head to see the other dog staring at her with his mouth open and his tongue hanging over his jaw. Jyn put her nose against his to say thank you for the flower. The dog’s tail went crazy. She had heard the pretty lady call him Cass. She assumed that was his name. She decided it was a nice name. Cass inched closer until their sides were touching. Jyn allowed the contact. After a few minutes of getting used to each other Jyn nuzzled Cass’s cheek and he licked her jaw in response. Jyn felt funny inside. It was kind of like how she felt when she looked at Ben only this was a stronger feeling. She started to worry about what would happen when Ben didn’t need to go to the library anymore. She had heard him say that his studying was nearly over. She looked at Cass with sad eyes. He cocked his head to the side questioningly. He didn’t get why she was upset so she lay down and Cass snuggled down next to her. 

When Rey returned and saw the two dalmatians pressed up against each other her heart melted. She walked over to them and Cass wagged his tail at her approach but didn’t get up. 

“Guess you two have got to know each other pretty well huh?” Rey said with a smile as she stroked their heads. She looked at Jyn’s collar.

“Jyn, that’s a nice name.” 

Jyn barked in response and Cass wagged his tail harder. Jyn! The love of his life was called Jyn! 

Then Rey untied him and started to walk away. Cass held fast and stared at Jyn. Rey bit her lip as she looked at the two of them.

“We’ll be back tomorrow,” she told Cass and eventually he allowed her to lead him away. 

When Ben arrived back at the railings, Jyn looked really sad and Ben had no idea why. Even a whole pocket full of chicken treats couldn’t cheer her up. Ben fretted about her mood all night and part of the morning until they arrived back at the library and suddenly everything became clear. 

The closer they got to the old stone building, the quicker Jyn ran until Ben was jogging to keep up with her. She managed to slip the lead out of his hand and bounded up the library steps. The other Dalmatian was already tied up and started jumping and barking as Jyn approached. The two of them rubbed noses and Ben finally realised what was going on. His dog was in love. 

Ben walked over to them and tied Jyn up. Lightly reprimanding her for running away from him. She whined a little and Cass whined too. Ben chuckled at the two sets of sad eyes staring up at him. He relented and gave them both a treat. 

As Ben walked into the library he pondered what could be done about his doggy predicament. He should try to find out who the dog belonged to, but how? He decided it might be fun to try a little detective work and started slowly walking through the rows to try and identify the dalmatians keeper. 

There was an older man with a pot belly looking at books on how to catch rabbits. He figured that probably wasn’t the owner. There were a couple of younger kids at the back where the dusty chemistry books were, who looked like they were there just to make out. Ben smirked and left them to it. There was a woman with a large brimmed hat looking at books on napkin folding… mmm…. probably not. Then he saw her. Of course! The cute art student! The one who always wore paint covered jeans and a beautiful smile. It had to be her. He watched as she ran her slender fingers along the books in the creative crafts section. He loved her chestnut hair and the way it bobbed just above her shoulders in little curls. He bit his lip and hardened his resolve. He had always wanted to talk to her but never managed to muster the courage, but now he had a reason! Their dogs were in love! Okay, it was a strange reason but a reason nonetheless. He took a step towards her… 

Rey held her breath as she watched the handsome architecture student approach her out the corner of her eye. She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear as her heart hammered in her chest and she pretended to be oblivious to his presence. She had been waiting for this moment for weeks. Weeks full of sneaking glances at him as he ran his hand through his hair or leafed through the pages of a book with his long fingers. Oh, how she envied his research material. She wished he would run his hands down her spine like he did with his course textbooks. 

He was inches away when she turned to smile up at him. He had gently dark eyes, black hair to his shoulders, a long nose and he was tall, so tall. Rey didn’t think she had a type… but she realised she did and it was this man. He smiled down at her and Rey opened her mouth to speak when a chorus of barking outside the library drew their attention. They both looked at each other once more, then ran for the exit. 

**********


	2. Chapter 2

Cass and Jyn had been minding their own business when the ginger terror had arrived and started casually licking its paw right in front of them. Cass had growled a warning but the cat had just ignored them. Cass knew that Rey had told him not to chase cats. But the rule made no sense to him. Cats were clearly evil beings. Rey just didn’t understand. Silly human. 

The cat swished past Jyn and it’s tail tickled her nose. She sneezed. The demon made his beloved Jyn sneeze. That was the last straw. Cass pulled on his lead until it came free and lunged at the cat. Jyn started to panic and freed herself in order to stop Cass, but when the cat hissed a warning at her, Jyn forgot about Ben’s instructions to stay put. Cass was right, cats were evil and this particular cat was especially irritating! They took up chase. 

Ben and Rey ran outside and were greeted by the sight of both their dogs running wild in the streets chasing a screeching ginger tom cat. The cat climbed a tree and each of the humans ran for the nearest dog and ended up with each other’s. 

“You want to keep better control of your animal!” A stocky newspaper vendor shouted at Rey angrily. 

“Would you like to berate me too?” Ben said calmly, taking a step towards the man. The bystander took one long at the tall, broad man in front of him and quickly shut his mouth and returned to his papers. 

Ben turned to smile at Rey. “I think this is yours,” he said, handing her Cass’s lead. 

Rey smiled. “This one must be yours then.” 

They exchanged dogs. 

“He’s normally so obedient, but he does have a strong dislike of cats,” Rey explained.

Ben nodded. “Jyn also. It’s quite a passionate hatred.” 

“She’s beautiful,” Rey said with a smile.

“So is he,” Ben replied, gesturing to Cass.   


Cass wagged his tail. He wasn’t sure what was going on but he sensed they were saying something good about him. 

Ben and Rey looked at each other and smiled. 

“Do you want to walk these two through the park? There was something I was hoping to discuss with you,” Ben said.

Rey nodded and they entered the park. Jyn and Cass walked side by side. 

“I think I know what you’re going to tell me,” Rey said with a smile.

“It seems our dogs have fallen in love,” Ben confirmed. 

“It would appear that way.” 

“What do you think we should do about it?” Ben asked. 

Rey shrugged. “I’m not sure. Do you need to do anything about it? Cass is fixed.”

Ben looked concerned. “I’m just worried if we don’t nip this in the bud now, they could find it difficult to be apart. It could start to cause behavioural problems.” 

Rey gasped. “Oh! I never thought of that. But I hate the idea of keeping them apart.” 

“I’m not sure what else we can do.” 

Rey chewed her lip for a moment, as if he could sense what the conversation was about, Cass looked up at her with big sad eyes and whimpered. She couldn’t split them up, she just couldn’t. 

Rey looked at the gorgeous specimen beside her and her heart started to race as she considered the proposition she was about to put forward to him. “What if there was another option?” she offered.

Ben’s eyes flew to hers. “What do you mean?” 

“I have a spare room.” 

“What are you suggesting?” 

“I’m suggesting we’re both students and we both need to watch our outgoings very carefully. I’m suggesting that instead of splitting our dogs up, we give them what they want and let them be together. I’m suggesting you could move in with me. You and Jyn.” 

Jyn barked.

“Well that’s one yes vote, what about you?” Rey asked expectantly.

Ben blinked hard. Was this really happening? Was this beautiful woman really asking him to move in with her? 

_ This had to be a dream, this couldn’t be real life…  _

“Do you always ask total strangers to live with you?” Ben asked with amusement. 

“Only the ones who happen to own dogs my dog is in love with… so only you.” 

_Adorable..._ Ben thought to himself. 

They continued walking while Ben considered her proposal. 

“Have you ever had a roommate before?” he asked. 

Rey shook her head. “No. But I think it would be kind of nice.” 

“Me neither, but it could be sort of fun…” 

“Have you ever lived with a...girlfriend before?” Rey asked gently.

Ben smirked at her probing. “No, I’ve never had a relationship get to that level.”

“Me neither.” 

“Won’t your boyfriend mind if I move in?” Ben asked.

Rey smiled. “No. I don’t have a boyfriend right now.” 

_ Thank god.  _

“Are you seeing anyone right now?” Rey asked.

Ben shook his head. He imagined Rey falling asleep on his shoulder after watching a movie. He imagined them cooking together. Studying together. Walking their dogs together. It was all wonderfully tempting. 

“I want to move in with you,” he suddenly blurted out. “I can move in right away actually, my landlord is wanting to sell.”

_ Shit, Ben! Don’t scare her off!  _

Rey grinned. “Then this all worked out perfectly! Do you hear that, Cass? Your girlfriend is coming to live with us!” 

Ben grinned as Rey bent down to hug Cass. Saying yes to Rey’s idea felt so right.

They walked for hours working out all the details of the move, and swapped phone numbers when they eventually parted. 

One week later, Ben and Jyn moved in. Ben learned that Rey never cooked but loved to eat. He learned that she loved old movies and watching rainstorms. 

Rey learnt that Ben enjoyed cooking much to her delight, and collected interesting rocks he found on his walks with Jyn. When she heard the story of how Ben found and cared for Jyn, her heart melted. 

Jyn and Cass were overjoyed to be moving in with one another. They jumped and rolled and begged for treats from their owners. Ben put Jyn’s basket down by Cass’s and they fell asleep with their paws touching.

“They are so sweet,” Rey said as she watched them. 

“They are,” Ben agreed. 

They looked at each other and Rey licked her bottom lip. 

“I don’t know if I should tell you this, but I’ve kind of had a crush on you for a while,” she confessed. 

“Me too,” Ben murmured in response.

“Well we can't do anything about that now that we’re going to be roomies,” Rey said firmly.

Ben nodded. “Agreed. We have to maintain some boundaries.” 

“So just friends then.” 

“Yeah, just friends.” 

They shook hands and tried to ignore the electricity that passed between them. 

Ben and Rey stayed friends...for three weeks. Until the night that Rey found a stray Dalmatian puppy and Ben gently wrapped it in his large arms and whispered soft words into his ear and as Rey watched, she knew she was in love with this gentle giant who was now all she could think about. So as Ben passed the puppy to Jyn and Cass who were overjoyed to receive the little bundle into their family unit, Rey reached for Ben and pressed a kiss to his lips. 

She spent a few minutes waiting anxiously while Ben processed what she had just done, then he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back. 

The new puppy watched drowsily and wondered why the humans were licking each other, then he settled down to sleep in between Jyn and Cass. They smelt nice and they were so warm. He was happy to be in what he hoped was his forever home. Jyn gave his head a soft lick as he drifted off. 

“Our new addition seems to be fitting in well,” Ben said the next morning, kissing the top of Rey’s head and putting an arm across her shoulders. It felt good to be able to touch her as much as he wanted. 

Rey smiled up at him. “Yes, he’s doing great thanks to your care.” 

“I think it’s thanks to them two,” Ben said, gesturing to Jyn and Cass.

“They do appear to be naturals at this parenting thing,” Rey said softly as she gazed down at them. 

“What should we call him?” Ben asked.

“I was thinking maybe CJ?” 

Ben looked at her lovingly. “Oh, I get it, the first initials of Cass and Jyn, very clever!” 

Rey glowed under his praise. “Let me get dressed and we can go for a family walk. I think CJ is strong enough now.” 

The puppy yapped in response, but Ben was too moved by Rey’s ‘family’ comment to find the scene before him amusing. He caught her as she walked past him and kissed her softly. 

“We are a family now, aren’t we?” he said, nuzzling her nose. 

“Yes we are,” Rey replied, kissing him softly. 

The relationship grew and grew just as CJ grew. A year later, Ben watched with tears in his eyes as Rey graduated and later, as they celebrated with champagne and dancing in their tiny kitchen, CJ came running up to them and jumped up to join in. Rey laughed as she ruffled the dogs ears and then her hand came into contact with something attached to CJ’s collar.

“What’s this?” she said as she removed the small box and opened it up. Her hand flew to her mouth as her eyes settled on the beautiful diamond ring the box contained. Ben dropped to one knee and CJ sat down next to him just as Ben had taught him. CJ did his very best to stay put even as his mom and dad came and sat down next to him. Just as they had rehearsed. Ben had told him if he was especially good, he would get extra treats. So he sat very still while the humans talked. There were lots of tears and hugging and Ben put the metal circle thing on Rey’s finger. Then there was laughing and then there were treats and mom and dad licked him and he felt very happy. Rey gave him a big hug and he licked her face to let her know he loved her very much. 

“Do you think they know what’s going on?” Rey asked as she hugged Ben and looked down at their furry family. 

Ben kissed her temple. “I’m sure they do on some level.” 

“I want CJ to be our ring bearer.” 

“I’ll start training him tomorrow.”

Rey smiled up at him. “I’m so happy.” 

“Me too.” 

The dalmatians barked.

“I think they are happy too,” Rey giggled.

“Once I’ve graduated, we’ll buy a bigger place, outside the city where they can have a big garden to run in,” Ben said. 

“Yes! And then we’ll have space for more dogs!” 

Ben chuckled. “How many dogs do you think we should get?” 

“As many as I can fit in my heart.” 

Ben kissed her. “Okay, sweetheart. So long as you save some space in there for me.” 

Rey smiled against his mouth. “Of course.” 

“I love you, Rey. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you and collect dogs as easily as others collect loose coins off the sidewalk.” 

Rey laughed then sighed. “Sounds like the perfect way to spend a life to me.” 

**********


End file.
